Mexico City’s Forests: The Rise In Logging And Its Implications

Mexico City’s diverse flora is crucial to the city’s environment. In particular, the forest is responsible for both restoring aquifers and cleaning polluted air, which nine million residents depend on. The aquifers alone are the main water source for 20 million inhabitants in both the city itself and its suburbs. These water sources require forests in order to be refilled, without which water would not be held and absorbed into the aquifers.

In 2010, 100,000 of Mexico City’s 370,000 acres were forested. Mexico City is losing trees at an unprecedented rate over the last four years. The number of trees lost in 2022 equaled the total number lost from the previous four years. Not including partially cut acres, 121 acres were lost in 2022 alone, and the number is continuously increasing. Taking into account partially cut acres, the number affected rises to 6,000 as of the middle of 2023. This is far greater than in 2020 when the estimate of acres affected by illegal logging was around 500.

One significant cause of logging stems from plagues such as mistletoe, bark beetles, and fungi, which have spread rapidly among Mexico’s numerous tree species. In 2022 alone, 850 palm trees were cut down by government agencies to combat the spread of fungi, bark beetles, and mistletoe. Unfortunately, this is only one of many causes of logging. Urbanization is another dangerous contributor. Mexico has needed to develop at the expense of the environment. With the sharp rise in Mexico City’s population from 1950 through the 1970s, the consequent increase in urbanization diminished the forests as well. The increase in population called for deforestation to create free land to build on. Urbanization’s effect on Mexico City’s forests was also seen more indirectly as the redirection of freshwater from the environment to provide for the population’s decreased biodiversity and plant life.

Another crucial cause of logging is within the illegal sector. New strict rules that Mexico’s government has enforced against selling gasoline and diesel illegally taken from the government are believed to have played a part as illegal sellers of gasoline and diesel now rely on logging for their income. Thus, Mexico’s greatest challenge in resolving illegal logging is regulating crime. Mexico City’s authorities, using 500 soldiers, began raids in June of 2023 to catch the illegal loggers, and while they have managed to identify five organized crime groups, the task of arresting them is even more taxing. The criminal groups have far greater resources than the Mexico City authorities, who have experienced attacks on their rangers and soldiers.

If these criminals are left unchecked, the environmental implications of logging have the potential to cause large-scale devastation. While farmers are diligently planting new seeds, their efforts have not been enough to keep up with continuous deforestation. One half of the city is rife with traffic jams and polluted air, and the other is currently rural. Illegal logging threatens this balance. With half of the city already heavily polluted, the trees are necessary to clean this polluted air. Urban forests remove thousands of tons of particular matter, ozone, and gaseous air pollution every year. These forests also aid in curbing high temperatures, while fallen branches, leaves, and pine needles from tree logging could add fuel to forest fires.

Mexico City’s authorities have been identifying those behind the illegal logging, but this has caused retaliation from these criminals. Government authorities have funded efforts to combat the logging by planting new trees, but it has been nearly impossible to plant enough new trees to keep up with the rapid loss of trees. Since trees require several years to grow and mature and  many young trees do not survive, the forests will struggle to survive unless the deforestation itself is stopped. 

Another pressing concern arises from how dangerous the illegal loggers are to people as well. Their determination to earn money makes them highly motivated to intimidate and act violently against anyone standing in their way. The fear this creates is discouraging to more and more people looking to plant trees to combat deforestation. Most are accompanied by National Guard security members and asked to remain unnamed for their own security. One ranger was even shot by the illegal loggers in November and was left no choice but to leave his home following threats to his family. Unfortunately, this ranger’s story is common in Mexico. With 54 land and environment defense activists killed in 2021 alone, Mexico was unceremoniously crowned the world’s deadliest country for environmentalists. Nevertheless the Mexican government is still looking for ways to combat logging-related crime. One alternative method is monitoring systems, which allow the reportage of illegal logging incidents without fear of retribution. These include satellites and a website where alerts are available to the public and the state. With Mexico City’s history of illegal logging, these systems may not be enough to catch these criminals with years of experience evading authorities.